UNAMA steps in to patch up tribal feud

JALALABAD (PAN): The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has intervened to end a long-running tribal feud, which has caused hundreds of casualties, in the Kamdesh district of eastern Nuristan province.

Apart from UNAMA, tribal elders are also making hectic efforts to end the century-old enmity between Kamdesh and Kashtoz tribes, but a reconciliation deal is yet to be reached.

A resident of Kashtoz, Kakayal Nuristani, told Pajhwok Afghan News UNAMA officials held three-day talks with elders from both sides at the governor’s house in Nangarhar. But a formal settlement is yet to be achieved.

He explained: “As a matter of fact, reconciliation wasn’t discussed. We just exchanged views about convening a jirga.” He rejected the news reports saying that reconciliation had taken place between the tribes.

A tribal elder from Kamdesh, Fazal Azam, confirmed attending the UNAMA-brokered negotiations at the Nangarhar governor’s office on how to pave the ground for a grand peace jirga.

“Indubitably, it has been a deadly enmity, affecting whole villages and inflicting casualties on dozens of people,” remarked Azam, who said they had been negotiating ways of ending it over the past few days.

UNAMA’s political officer in the eastern zone, Dr Hikmatullah Siyal, also rejected the impression that a pat-chap had been reached between the feuding tribes. In response to requests from Nuristan official and tribal elders, the UN mission arranged the jirga to convince both sides into reconciliation.

Nuristan peace committee head Halim Khan called the UNAMA-arranged jirga a preliminary meeting that would be followed by more talks on reconciling the tribes.

“When the snow melts, we will convene a grand jirga to invite both tribes to reconciliation,” he concluded.